The present invention relates to vehicle seat assemblies which are movable between at least one use location in a vehicle and at least one storage location and in which a seat component, such as the seat cushion, is movable between operative and non-operative positions. In particular, the invention relates to a single latch for both holding the seat in place within the vehicle, as well as, holding the movable seat component in its non-operative position.
Vans and other multi-purpose passenger vehicles are being designed with flexible seating systems that offer a number of options in how the vehicle seats are configured. As an example, a van may be offered with three rows of seats, a front row of seats permanently installed in the vehicle, a middle row of seats which can be removed from the vehicle and a rear bench seat, which is movable along a track between a rear use location and a middle use location when the middle row of seats have been removed. In addition, the bench seat can be moved to a pair of storage locations, one immediately behind the middle row of seats and another immediately behind the front row of seats when the middle row of seats have been removed.
In order to move the bench seat to its storage locations, the seat cushion is raised from its horizontal operative position to an upright non-operative position, immediately in front of the seat back. Such a seat requires a first latch for holding the seat cushion in the upright non-operative position, a second latch for locking the seat to the track in the vehicle floor in the use and storage locations, and a third latch or memory mechanism which distinguishes between the use locations and the storage locations of the seat for operation of the seat cushion latch.
The use locations of the seat are defined by the presence of seat belts or other restraints in the vehicle. It is necessary to prevent use of the seat when the seat is not in one of the use locations. To accomplish this, some type of interlock is required to couple the seat cushion latch to the seat track latch to ensure that the seat cushion can only be moved to its operative position when the entire seat is latched to the vehicle floor at a use location. Such an interlock between the cushion latch and the track latch results in a complicated mechanism with a high amount of tolerance stack up. Furthermore, the mechanism can be difficult to learn how to operate.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a single multifunction latch for such vehicle seats which is easily operated by a single operating handle.
The seat latch of the present invention has a single "towel bar" operating handle extending across the front of the seat. The handle is raised to release the seat from the track in the vehicle floor for moving the seat between use and storage locations. The handle is lowered to release the seat cushion from its non-operative upright position, allowing the seat cushion to be rotated to its horizontal operative position. To prevent movement of the seat from a use location when the seat cushion is not in its storage position, the latch includes a cam which only allows the towel bar operating handle to be raised, releasing the seat for movement in the vehicle, when the seat cushion is in its non-operative storage position. Likewise, a second cam prevents release of the seat cushion from its non-operative position unless the seat is latched at a use location.
The latch includes two latch pawls, a seat latch pawl and a cushion latch pawl, each are engageable with separate latch plates to hold the seat in place and the seat cushion in place. The seat latch pawl engages the seat track, which functions as a seat latch plate, in both the use locations and the storage locations of the seat to hold the seat in place in the vehicle. However, only when the seat latch pawl is engaged with the track at one of the seat use locations will the latch enable release of the seat cushion from its non-operative position.
Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the appended claims when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.